Lidl gives half of its Scottish beer shelf to women brewers

United Kingdom | Lidl is raising a glass to equality, launching Scotland’s first gender-balanced beer aisle. From 28th August, the retailer has given equal shelf space to Scottish craft beers brewed by women and women-owned breweries across all 112 Lidl stores in Scotland.

More than 200 UK pubs were demolished or repurposed in first half of 2025

United Kingdom | Eight pubs a week ceased trading across the UK during the first half of 2025, as the industry grapples with escalating tax and labour costs. Official government statistics show 209 pubs were either demolished or repurposed for other uses. This decline has seen the total number of pubs in England and Wales, including those vacant or available to let, fall to 38,780.

AB-InBev discontinues Belle-Vue Gueuze

Belgium | A piece of Belgian beer history is disappearing from the shelves: AB-InBev has decided to discontinue the Belle-Vue Gueuze brand. The reason is a sharp drop in demand, a spokesperson for the brewer confirmed on 25 August. In the future, only Belle-Vue Kriek will be brewed in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, a town southwest of Brussels.

BrewDog’s co-founder Martin Dickie leaves craft beer firm

United Kingdom | BrewDog’s co-founder Martin Dickie has abruptly left the Ellon-based craft brewer and pub operator, British media reported in August. He said the decision was taken for personal reasons: he now wants to spend more time with his young family.

Ireland | Only in 2022 had the Killarney Brewing & Distilling Co. expanded to become Ireland’s largest independently owned beer and whiskey producer. In July, it closed down, the latest casualty of a short-lived whisky boom.

Carlsberg gloomy on 2025 consumer sentiment

Denmark | Carlsberg missed half-year profit and volume forecasts on 14 August and warned it did not expect the consumer environment to improve during the remainder of 2025. This sent the Danish brewer's shares down almost 7 percent in early trading, Reuters reported. The latest half-year figures by the world's third-largest brewer - behind AB-InBev and Heineken - was received with similar pessimism to those of its rivals in recent weeks with investors sending shares declining.

Diageo to cut more costs as tariffs bite

United Kingdom | Profit at leading drinks firm Diageo has fallen far short of analysts’ expectations as high costs hammer the drinks giant. Net sales fell 0.1 percent to USD 20.24 billion in the 12 months to the end of June compared with a year earlier, Diageo reported on 5 August.

AB-InBev hikes profits despite volume dip

Belgium | Shares of AB-InBev plunged as much as 11 percent on 31 July, after the world’s major brewer posted a worse-than-feared decline in second-quarter volumes. The Budweiser maker said volumes declined 1.9 percent (-3 million hl) year-on-year over the three-month period, well ahead of the 0.3 percent dip forecast by analysts. The volume decline was attributed to weaker demand for its beers in China and Brazil. In the first half of 2025, AB-InBev sold a total of 6 million hl less beer than in the same period last year.

Heineken’s revenue down 5 percent in first half of 2025

The Netherlands | Heineken reported a 5 percent decline in revenue for the first half of 2025, totalling EUR 16.9 billion. The Dutch brewer, on 28 July, attributed the drop primarily to the stronger euro, which reduced the value of its foreign earnings when converted to euros, particularly from markets such as Mexico, Brazil, and Ethiopia.

Deposit on cans disrupts Austria’s beer market

Austria | Major changes to Austria’s beverage container deposit scheme on 1 January have led to “structural changes” in the beer market. Although there are no data available yet, observers suspect that sales of canned beer and beverages have declined significantly, especially in Austria’s regions which border Hungary and Slowenia. Cross-border shoppers liked to stock up on deposit-free beer. No longer, apparently.